SALT LAKE CITY — The lions sleepily lounged on their backs in the morning sun. The elephants lumbered in and out of view. The seals took speedy laps around their tank.
And children pressed up against the fenced or glassed-in enclosures to catch glimpses of the exotic animals.
A day at Utah’s Hogle Zoo amid the coronavirus pandemic isn’t all that different but at the same time it’s all different.
One little girl scooted under the caution tape surrounding an otter statue and hugged and kissed the bronze figure, much to the “ews” and “yucks” of her helpless family.
Caution tape cordoned off all the statues at the zoo as well as the playground that would ordinarily be teeming with kids on a sunny evening with a chill in the air. Parents looking to take pictures of their children slurping from the iconic open-mouth lion drinking fountain had to settle for poses outside the tape.
The indoor exhibits, too, are off-limits for now as the zoo has taken steps help keep visitors and workers safe when it reopened May 2 after being closed for 50 days.
Green arrows painted on the pavement point visitors on a one-way path through the 42-acre park. The zoo restricts the number of guests each day to help ensure proper distancing and limits visits to two hours. Workers wear face coverings and visitors are encouraged to wear them as well.
Signs reading “Protect the herd!” by staying 6 feet apart and “Caution: high touch point” remind people that life is different right now.
On this recent day, some people were cautious, while others were not. A few people wore masks, but most didn’t. Some stayed back as a family gazed at the red pandas or monkeys, while others did not.
Jeffrey and Tessa Beck were just happy to get out of the house with their four children ages 7 years to 3 months. They were living in China as the COVID-19 outbreak spread to the United States and were able to get back to Utah just a day before the travel restrictions.
The Becks, of Alpine, said although the playground and some of the shops were closed, they could still enjoy watching the animals, though the felt like they had to keep moving.
“We probably would have spent another hour or two here, but our two hours are up,” Jeffrey Beck said near the exit.
Tessa Beck said some people observed social distancing, while others treated it as a normal day at the zoo. Everyone was different, she said, but added that the zoo is doing a good job to keep it safe.
“The thing that worried us the most coming today to the zoo was the weather,” Jeffrey Beck said.
Zoo spokeswoman Erica Hansen said the park has overall received positive feedback, though the wearing or not wearing of face masks has been the biggest source of contention. Some people have asked how the zoo cannot require masks, while others say how dare it suggest people wear them.
“They’re just as vocal on both sides of that issue,” she said.
Hansen said the zoo is sticking to Salt Lake County guidelines to help protect its front-line workers from trying to enforce a mask policy on someone who doesn’t think they should have to wear one.
Still, she said people seem to be enjoying the opportunity to get out and stretch their legs.
